Encyclopedia Dubuque
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
DUBUQUE COUNTY COURTHOUSE: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:och.jpg|left|thumb|150px|The second Dubuque County Courthouse was constructed in 1839 to replace a log building located on Washington (Square) Park | [[Image:och.jpg|left|thumb|150px|The second Dubuque County Courthouse was constructed in 1839 to replace a log building located on Washington (Square) Park. Photo courtesy: Bob Reding]] | ||
DUBUQUE COUNTY COURTHOUSE. The | DUBUQUE COUNTY COURTHOUSE. The second county courthouse (pictured) was a massive brick structure built in 1839. Samuel Wilkings and Joseph Ogilby were both credited with being the architect. An estimated 244,518 bricks for the construction came from the Langworthy brickyards. An addition to the west was constructed in 1856 from a design made by [[RAGUE, John Francis|John Francis RAGUE]]. In 1891 the building was demolished for the construction of the present building. | ||
[[Image:CORNERSTONE.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Laying the cornerstone of the courthouse in 1891. Photo courtesy: Bob Reding]] | [[Image:CORNERSTONE.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Laying the cornerstone of the courthouse in 1891. Photo courtesy: Bob Reding]] | ||
Revision as of 05:47, 18 February 2012
DUBUQUE COUNTY COURTHOUSE. The second county courthouse (pictured) was a massive brick structure built in 1839. Samuel Wilkings and Joseph Ogilby were both credited with being the architect. An estimated 244,518 bricks for the construction came from the Langworthy brickyards. An addition to the west was constructed in 1856 from a design made by John Francis RAGUE. In 1891 the building was demolished for the construction of the present building.
The present Courthouse, Dubuque's best example of BEAUX ARTS ARCHITECTURE, was designed by Fridolin HEER and Son. It is constructed of gray Indiana limestone, brick and molded terra cotta. One of the first local buildings added to the NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES, the Courthouse is eighty-eight by one hundred twenty-five feet in size. A central tower rising one hundred ninety feet is capped with a fourteen-foot tall bronze statue of Justice. Allegorical pewter figures remain on the building.
During WORLD WAR I, four large statues of winged angels with trumpets were removed and melted down to aid in the war effort. A glass dome on the fourth floor was removed when the elevator was installed.
Renovation of the building in the 1980s included a ground floor entrance to replace the second floor entrance on Central Avenue. A controversial gold leaf coating on the dome was added in the 1980s. Private support for the $74,500 project included a $10,000 donation from the Marcella Lott Trust Fund. Interior work included the addition of a granite fountain, a reminder of the original watering troughs for horses that stood outside. Plaster was removed from the walls to reveal the original brick. A five-story glass-encased elevator was added. (Photo Courtesy: http://www.dubuquepostcards.com
Among the most memorable incidents at the courthouse was the time its exterior was climbed by Everett AKINS.